


Mens Rea

by SirJosephBanksFRS



Category: Aubrey-Maturin Series - Patrick O'Brian
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-05
Updated: 2013-01-05
Packaged: 2017-11-23 17:49:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/624895
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SirJosephBanksFRS/pseuds/SirJosephBanksFRS
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Occurs during the novel, <em>Master and Commander</em> (as recounted in <em>The Reverse of the Medal</em>)</p><p>A very young Babbington seeks a private consultation with Dr. Maturin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mens Rea

Stephen Maturin came to his tiny cabin in the _Sophie_ and was surprised to find a tear-streaked, blotchy Midshipman William Babbington, _Sophie’s_ youngest of the young gentleman standing inside the open doorway, pretending to be examining Dr Maturin's specimen of _Ichthyaetus melanocephalus,_ laid upon his desk awaiting preservation.

"Mr Babbington, are you not well?" Stephen said, noting the right cuff of his dark blue coat made darker still, apparently with tears and the bottom of his nose, bright red from being abraded by the buttons. Obviously, the matter was a sensitive one and that was why the child had not come to the sick berth.

"Sir," Babbington whispered, "Sir, I must speak with you privately, 'tis of the greatest import." Stephen looked at him kindly and closed the door. As soon as the latch clicked, tears streamed down Babbington's face. Stephen took his clean handkerchief from his waistcoat, handed it to Babbington and touched his shoulder soothingly.

"There, there, do not vex yourself, my dear, nothing can be so terrible as all that."

"Sir," Babbington choked, "how can someone rid themselves of a baby?" Stephen frowned. It was inconceivable to him that this child, whose voice had not yet broken, had gotten anyone with child. At least Stephen hoped it was inconceivable. Babbington stared down at Stephen’s specimen to avoid his eyes.

"Before the child is born?"

"Yes, sir," Babbington said and broke into sobs.

"William, what you speak of is a great, great wickedness. I took a sacred oath to preserve life and not to destroy it. ‘Tis extremely dangerous as well, with significant risk of infection and death."

"But, sir," Babbington cried, "I shall have to leave the Navy..." and Babbington wept copiously.

"Surely not, William. Have you spoken to the girl? To her family?"

"No," poor Babbington sobbed,"I am too ashamed and we have not been back to Port Mahón since I found out." Stephen looked at him curiously.

"Who is the girl? Is she a Minorcan young lady? What is her name?"

"I don't know her name!" Babbington sobbed. "I'm not even sure which girl it was." Stephen was taken aback.

"Mr Babbington, I find I do not understand."

"Please, sir, you must help me! Oh, how shall I ever tell my mother and father? Please, sir, you must do something. I don't want a baby!"

"Babies come, wanted or no." Babbington wept more.

"Does it hurt terribly, sir? Having the baby?" His voice piped shrilly and ended in a sob.

"Sure, it may be extremely painful, depending on the presentation, but not for all. One must hope for the best." Babbington sobbed louder still." William, get a hold of yourself. You are not the first young man ever to get a girl with child."

"But, sir, it ain't her, it's me!" Babbington said, hiding his face in his hands. Stephen was silent and looked at Babbington sobbing, his tears dropping onto the dark head feathers of his _Ichthyaetus melanocephalus._ Stephen touched the head and neck feathers and noted that Babbington’s tears must have some significant proteinaceous exudate, the wet feathers were sticky, indeed, sticking together. No chance to check for conjunctivitis with this spate of sobbing until the morrow. Trachoma? Extremely unlikely. Not one isolated case on board the ship. Very unlikely this far north, despite many, many reports of cases now on the Continent. Thinned nasal mucus streaming down the child’s face mixed with tears? Probable. Stephen would make a point of examining Babbington in two days time.  
  
"William, who told you that you are with child?" Stephen said, making a point of not looking at Babbington’s face, looking at his nearly ruined specimen.  
  
"Mr Ricketts and Mr Adams. They said everyone could tell in a week or two and I shall be punished. Sir, I cannot bear the shame! Oh, what will the Captain do to me? I shall be sent home in disgrace."  
  
"William, my dear, you are not with child," Stephen said.  
  
"How do you know, Doctor?" Babbington asked him, wide-eyed.  
  
"Because such a thing is impossible. I fear your very wicked shipmates have been practicing upon you. Do you not know where babies come from?"  
  
"I do, sir! I do!” Stephen looked at him very dubiously with raised eyebrows.  “Well, perhaps not exactly..."  
  
"Dear, dear me," Dr Maturin said, pulling a very thick book from his shelf and opening it to the illustrated plates in the center.

 

Some hours later, Stephen Maturin sat in the great cabin with Jack Aubrey preparing to have some music.

"Jack, do you know what those infernal villains in your midshipman's berth did? They convinced poor Babbington that he is with child and he should have to leave the Navy,"  Stephen said, tuning his cello.  

Jack put his violin down and sat down at the table and laughed so heartily that his face turned lobster red and tears streamed down his face. He could barely breathe for laughing and gasped for breath. He grasped the edge of the table to keep from falling off his chair.

"It is not so amusing, Jack. The poor child was ready to throw himself overboard in despondency. He could have done something very rash and injurious, could have sought out some quacksalver who would have gladly given him a noxious draft to cure a condition he does not have. Or he could have improvised himself and taken a poison. The poor boy is severely costive and those rogues told him the lump in his belly was a baby. I have given him a series of draughts and hope he may be relieved by tomorrow. If not, then I have enemata for him and an assignment to the head."  
  
"That may be," Jack said, trying to collect himself, "but you are quite wrong, Stephen, that may be the drollest story I have ever heard." Jack laughed more. "That poor shatterbrained child, dear God!" Stephen did not smile.  
  
"That was over an hour of my time, Jack, and one of my avian specimens partially ruined with his tears."  
  
"Quite right, Stephen, I shall stop their grog for a week and then we shall see who is laughing," Jack said, wiping his eyes. "How exactly did he believe he was got with child?"

"He said he kissed a girl, I believe. I could not get him to elaborate.”

"Did you disabuse him of such a notion?"

"I attempted to enlighten him. It is a disgrace to have boys on a ship with so little basic physiological knowledge that they can be fooled this way.  They are subject to goodness knows what kind of abuse. Should you not instruct them, Jack, as they are under your care and protection?”

“I? Upon my word, Stephen, no, absolutely not. No, the midshipman’s berth is an education of itself. I should think the little brutes would know better than that by Babbington’s age. I cannot expect the schoolmaster, should we have one, to instruct them in such things; they are generally parsons. What about you, Stephen? Surely that is more in your line.”

“I am not up to the task. How old were you when you learned, Jack?"

"Twas before I went to sea. Ten or eleven, perhaps?”

“Who taught you?”  
  
“I do not quite remember, Stephen. I should say I was well aware before I ever went to sea. Perhaps not the finer points but the basic mechanics,” Jack said, blushing. “There were certainly animals about to observe. Really, the boy must be a complete simpleton. I had not thought him so before.”

“He is the naïf of the world, Jack. He did not grow up in the country. He has never seen the stallion led to the mare or any such thing.” Stephen sighed. “Tis a great shame, a child with so many advantages to be so profoundly ignorant. The lowest and most unwashed peasant in the country knows better than that by his age. I suppose he was kept in that darkness to preserve his chastity.”

“I wonder that he shall ever want to approach a girl again,” Jack mused.  
  
“The Dear knows," Stephen said. “I should never make such an assumption.”


End file.
